Both Lionel Messi and Neymar departed PSG after the 2022-23 European football season, ending disappointing spells at the Ligue 1 club. Since then, Messi has rediscovered his club form with Inter Miami. Meanwhile, Neymar moved to Saudi Arabia’s Al Hilal for a massive 90 million euros transfer fee, which is also a Saudi league record.
Messi’s arrival in France on August 10 2021 was met with much pomp and fanfare. The Argentine was expected to deliver the Champions League title for them, something which they have been trying since the Qatar ownership takeover. But the former Barcelona man wasn’t successful, and the goes for Neymar, who was also injured plenty of times.
Speaking to Globo, the Brazilian spoke about reuniting with Messi in PSG. The pair were teammates at Barcelona and also won a treble together. “I was very happy for the year he had, but at the same time very sad, because he lived both sides of the coin, he went to heaven with the Argentina team, won everything in recent years, and with Paris he lived hell”, he said.
“We lived through hell, both he and I. We get upset, because we’re not there for nothing, we’re there to do our best, be champions, try to make history, that’s why we started playing together again, we came together there so we could make history. Unfortunately, we didn’t make it”, he further added.
Pointing out that Messi deserved a better PSG farewell, than the one which he got. The 2022 World Cup winner was booed during his time in Paris and also during his last game for the club. “Messi left in a way that, for football, he didn’t deserve. For everything he is, everything he does, anyone who knows him knows, he is a guy who trains, who fights, if he loses he gets angry, and he was unfairly treated in my opinion. But at the same time I was very happy that he won the World Cup. As you said, football was fair this time, since the Brazilian team lost, Messi deserved to end his career like this”, said Neymar.
The pair were expected to return to Barcelona this summer, but with an unexpected twist have gone to complete opposite directions. Messi has revolutionised Miami and Neymar is expected to tear up the Saudi Pro League with Al Hilal.